1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus of a type having an image editing function and, also, a multi-color image copying function, and also to an image forming method practiced by the image forming apparatus of the type referred to above.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various types of copying machines are currently utilized for making copies. Some of them have an image editing function, some have a multi-color developing function and some others have both of these functions.
With the copying machines of a type having the image editing function, an original image of a document is divided into a plurality of edited areas; some of the edited areas are copied and the others of the edited areas are not copied, that is, erased.
In the copying machines of a type having the multi-color image copying function, the machines are equipped with a plurality of developing units accommodating masses of toner material of different colors, which developing units can be selectively brought into operation for developing an electrostatic latent image with the toner material.
With the copying machines of a type having both of the image editing function and the multi-color copying function, it is possible to develop images of the divided areas of the document in different colors. The present invention pertains to this type of copying machine and, therefore, reference will be made thereto in the following description.
According to the copying machine having both of the image editing function and the multi-color copying function, specification of the color in which some areas of the document are to be copied is carried out for each of the divided areas of the document. Considering the copy making jobs for specifying the colors in which the areas of the document are to be copied, one will realize that a particular one of the colors is dominantly selected and a greater number of copies are made in that particular color.
By way of example, assuming that the document to be copied is divided into three, first, second and third areas, the most common type of copy making job is to copy the first area in a black color, to copy the second area in a red color and to copy the third area in the form as erased with no image consequently formed. Accordingly, once the number of areas into which the document is divided and the types of color which an operator of the copying machine can specify are given, it is possible to design the machine so that the specification of a particular one of the colors (including an erasure) can be automated to some extent, which machine appears to please potential users of the copying machine.